Rynere straightened. She stared at him for a few moments, then turned and ran.

About two seconds later she collided with someone and flew backwards.

Rynere breathlessly regained her footing, staring at the person she had hit.

Tall. Brown-haired, brown eyes, looked like a hunter. He seemed just as surprised as she was.

"Who are you -" was all he was able to get out before Rynere whirled to the right and shot off again.

This time she was caught.

Strong arms grabbed hers. She couldn't yank away, but Rynere kept trying anyway.

"Prince Danid," the short, stocky figure called to the hunter, "I think we've got what you were looking for." His voice was neither kind nor unkind -simply matter-of-fact.

"What do you want with me?" Rynere hissed, still hoping to free herself -and failing -as her captor turned her around.

Danid approached, slowly.

"Don't worry, lady, we only needed someone -"

"Find someone else!"

"Apologies, Ryn, no can do," Tass appeared against a nearby tree, examining his fingernails.

"What are you talking about?"

Tass raised his eyebrows and smirked.

"Well, you see here, our dear prince Danny -"

 "Tass ..." Danid began warningly.

"-needs a bride. He was ordered, first maid he meets." Tass shrugged.

"I'm already married!"

Tass chuckled. "No need to lie, dear girl."

"It's as good as done. The wedding's to be in four days."

Tass snorted with laughter. Danid shot him a glare and he changed the laugh to a cough -barely.

"I'm sorry, lady. I have my orders. First unmarried girl," Danid shook his head slowly. "Or I die."

Rynere was silent for a few seconds.

"Kyndran!"

Her captor clapped a hand over her mouth.

Tass was smiling to himself as he drew a knife from his sleeve and examined it. Danid ignored him, turning back to Rynere.

"What's your name?"

"She's not going to tell you 'cause she doesn't trust you," Tass spoke up from his tree. "But it's Rynere."

Danid nodded once.

"Miss ...Rynere, is this ...Kyndran your betrothed?"

"Yes."

"Dearie, you can spout off untruths as much as you like," Tass interjected. "But even if this Kyndran likes you and you reciprocate the feeling -the latter of which I doubt -he either stays out of our way or we'll have to deal with him in our own fashion. I suggest you don't call for help."

Rynere looked at him warily.

"Prince Danid, I might come willingly if you tell me who this 'Tass' is and if you send him away."

"You don't need to give me a title."

Rynere heard snort from Tass's corner. She ignored him.

"But I'm afraid I can't send Tass away. He's your bodyguard."

"He's my what?" Rynere nearly shrieked.

Tass was biting his lip to keep from bursting into laughter. That still didn't prevent a grin.

"Tell the man who's holding me to let me go."

Danid looked at Tass, who shrugged, still smirking.

"Karoy."

Rynere's captor let her go, but she stayed where she was. Instead, she crossed her arms.

"Explain."

"Explain what? And what authority do you have that would make us tell?" Karoy asked sharply. Tass snickered. He was wearing on Rynere's nerves.

Danid glanced at both guards, then turned back to Rynere with a gentler manner.

"What exactly do you want to know?"

"Everything. Who you are, why you're here, why you want me -everything."

"Typical story, Ryn," Tass answered breezily.

"It's Rynere," she said between clenched teeth.

He barely paid attention to her.

"Handsome prince under a deadline to find the perfect bride. Meets young orphan girl under totally coincidental circumstances. Said young orphan girl is at first suspicious, but slowly grows to trust said prince until she finds out that he -"

"Enough," Danid growled.

"I don't want the story, I want the background."

"Danny here is a prince from a foreign land who needs to return with a bride. Preferably the first unmarried girl he sees."

"Preferably?" Danid repeated incredulously. "It has to be, or I die!"

Tass nodded knowingly to Rynere as if to say, 'How childishly melodramatic.'

She looked back at the prince, pointedly ignoring him. Tass continued anyway.

"Danid Anroy is your handsome dude here -"

"Dude?" Tass had Rynere's attention again. "What kind of a word -"

Danid shook his head. "Don't ask. He wants you to. And he wants to confuse you."

"As I was saying," Tass said with a yawn, "that's Dan, your knight in shining armor, Karoy Jame is his ever-loyal bodyguard. I'm the unidentified life form, and you are the package we'll be taking back with us."

"Where?"

"No place you've ever heard of. It's a fair distance from here."

Rynere paused, eyeing Danid and Tass, wary of Karoy still standing behind her.

Then she ran in the one open direction.

She had no idea how it happened, but Tass suddenly appeared in front of her. Rynere had no chance to stop or turn.

He grabbed her by the wrists.

"Sorry, m'dem, no going back allowed. Even if you're trying to do so by going the direction opposite the one you'd need to return. And you may scream all you want, but we're more than capable of handling your village."

"Let me go! I'm not going to let you bring me anywhere!"

"Then I apologize, maid, we'll do it anyway."